Morrigan's Leaving
by Lord Skye
Summary: The conclusion of the Grey Warden's final battle atop Fort Drakon. Sort of a prequel to my story "Searching..."


Ryan charged the Archdemon, he twirled his sword around in his hand, holding it like his dagger and leapt, just out of the way of the beast's gaping maw. His jump landed him on the abomination's knee. He kicked off of it and stuck his sword into the side of the beast. It roared and tried to fling him off, only succeeding in letting Ryan slide down with his sword, tearing open a fresh wound. He rolled out of the way and screamed "NOW!"

Nearly a dozen bursts of lighting and ice roared past Ryan's head and into the exposed wound of the Archdemon, the beast screaming in agony as the combined might of the battle mages of the Circle, assisted by the powers of Morrigan herself crashed into the Archdemon. The Old God roared and began to buckle, swiping out with its leg and catching Ryan in the chest, sending him a ways back from the roof, and his sword across the slick blood coated stones of the fort. Ryan scrambeled to his feet and saw the Archdemon on the ground, unable to move, blood pouring from the numerous wounds he and Alistair had delivered and the holes from the many arrows Leliana had fired. The Archdemon was down, but not dead, not yet.

Before anyone could stop him, Ryan ran at the beast. He pulled a sword from the body of a fallen comrade and charged the head of the Archdemon. It reared it's neck to take one final swipe at the Grey Warden, but Ryan fell to his knees, sliding across the slick stone, his sword up slicing open the beasts neck. He rolled out of the way of it's falling serpentine head and popped up to his feet. He grit his teeth and with an animalisitc roar of rage, brought the sword up and buried it in the dragon's head.

Ryan wasn't sure what happened next. There was a deafening noise and even though his eyes were shut tight, there was a near blinding light all around him. There was a buzzing in his head, the same one he felt when the Darkspawn were about, but louder than he believed possible, and even though he had never thought about this, had never been told, he knew he had to keep a hold of the sword.

'This is it,' he thought as the tempest roared around him. 'The price for killing the Archdemon. Morrigan's ritual failed and now I'm going to...' his thoughts ended with an explosion and he was flung away from the beast, flying backwards and crashing into one of the many piles of rubble, the battle atop Fort Drakon had created.

Ryan opened his eyes to a silent, slow moving world. At first he thought he was in the land beyond death, or back in the Fade, but when he looked around, he realized that wasn't the case. A slow smile formed on his face as he saw the still body of the Archdemon. He saw Leliana on her knees, praying, or at least he thought she was. He saw Eaoman's knights throwing their weapons down and cheering, hugging one another and even some of the Dalish Elves and some Dwarves that Ryan had summoned for the final assault doing the same. He turned and saw Alisatir, in his brother's armor, sword and shield falling from his grasp, helmet already off, with a goofy smile on his face and his arms outstreched as he ran towards Ryan. He saw the mages in the background, firing a shower of green sparks into the air, the signal they were meant to fire if and when the Archdemon died.

The world came rushing back as the Templar crashed into Ryan, cheering his spikey haired head off. And Ryan realized he was cheering too. "WE DID IT!" screamed Ryan pulling Alistair into his arms and hugging the man. "WE DID IT!"

"NO!" the Templar shouted back, smile on his face, beaming like you wouldn't believe. "YOU! YOU DID IT!"

Ryan grabbed the man by the scruff of his golden armor. "We did it Alistair. All of us, we did this together!" The men both laughed until they were side swiped by a lithe little figure, giggling hysterically. It was Leliana. Alistair picked up the firey bard by her wasit, hoisting her into the air, spinning her around. The bard laughed, wrapped her arms around Alistair and kissed him. Ryan laughed as the two embraced. He hadn't said anything to anyone, but he had, had an inkling that his fellow Grey Warden and Leliana were more than just fellow cohorts of his. He turned from his friends and the cheering thorngs, some near the edges of the roof, crying that the darkspawn horde was retreating, and looked back to where the mages had been, looking for his dark haired lover... but didn't see her.

He frowned, the smile on his face faltering as he walked over to where she had been before the Archdemon fell, looking all around, this way and that for his witch. His mouth fell open a little bit as he realized that she had kept her promises... all of them. She had saved him and Alistair from the price that the Grey Warden who killed the Archdemon had to pay, and she had left once the battle was over. Ryan was numb, he didn't know whether to cry or to take his anger out on the cobblestones on the rooftop, or just fall on his blade and let it all end. Instead he just stared into the setting sun and wondered if she ever really loved him at all.

Ryan didn't know how long he was standing there, but eventually, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He spun around, half expecting to see his lady love there, smiling at him like she did when she thought no one was looking. However, it was just Alistair. "You alright?" he asked his friend.

Ryan looked the new king in the eye, finally turning away from the sun. "No..." he said softly.

"She really left?" asked Alistair, looking in the same direction Ryan had been. "Well good riddance I sa-"

"Stop." Ryan said, interupting the man. "Just this once... please?"

Alistair nodded and sighed. "Come on." he said turning back. "I think the Bannorn is going to want to have words with their hero."

"Heros." Ryan said forcing back his smile. Morrigan might have been gone, but the Blight was over, he and his friends were alive, he deserved to be happy, and he was, to a point. He jogged to catch up to Alistair and Leliana, hand in hand heading back inside the fort, but stopped for a second and walked across the way to where his sword, still slick with Archdemon blood, lay. He picked up and wiped off the blade. He sheathed it and headed towards the door. He stopped for just a moment, looked back at the sun, and saw a raven sitting on a piece of rubble, staring at him with its head cocked. Ryan looked at it frowning, it's eyes seemed to have a very farmiliar amber hue to them... or was that the sun? He took a hesitant step towards it.

"Morrigan?" he said. The word was only half out of his mouth when the bird flew away towards the setting sun. Ryan watched it until it was out of sight, before he turned and disappeared into Fort Drakon.


End file.
